SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA — Thousands of immigrant drivers whose commercial driver’s licenses are set to expire next month were left uncertain after word spread that California planned to reissue the licenses, only for drivers to learn federal regulators had not authorized the state to proceed.

Amarjit Singh, a trucker and owner of a trucking company in the Bay Area, said he and other drivers felt hopeful when they heard California intended to reissue the licenses. “We were happy [the California Department of Motor Vehicles] was going to reissue them,” Singh said. “But now, things aren’t so clear and it feels like we’re in the dark.”

Singh said he does not know whether he should renew his insurance and permits that allow him to operate in different states. “I don’t know if I’m going to have to look for another job,” he said. “I’m stuck.”

Singh is one of 17,000 drivers who were given 60-day cancellation notices on Nov. 6 following a federal audit of California’s non-domiciled commercial driver’s license program. The program, which exists nationwide, allows immigrants authorized to work in the United States to obtain commercial driver’s licenses. The issue became a political flashpoint after an undocumented truck driver was accused of making an illegal U-turn and causing a crash in Florida that killed three people.

Officials said the federal audit found the California Department of Motor Vehicles had issued thousands of licenses with expiration dates that extended beyond the drivers’ work permits, prompting federal officials to halt the program until the state was in compliance.

This week, the San Francisco Chronicle obtained a letter dated Dec. 10 from DMV Director Steve Gordon to the U.S. Department of Transportation stating the state agency had met federal guidelines and would begin reissuing the licenses. DMV officials later confirmed they had notified regulators and were planning to issue the licenses on Wednesday, but federal authorities told them Tuesday that they could not proceed.

DMV officials said they met with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which oversees issuance of non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses, to seek clarification on what issues remain unresolved. A spokesperson for the Department of Transportation, which oversees the FMCSA, said only that the agency was continuing to work with the state to ensure compliance.

The DMV said it remains hopeful the federal government will allow California to move ahead, according to agency spokesperson Eva Spiegel. “Commercial drivers are an important part of our economy — our supply chains don’t move and our communities don’t stay connected without them,” Spiegel said. Spiegel added that the DMV “stands ready to resume issuing commercial driver’s licenses, including corrected licenses to eligible drivers,” and said the federal delay “not only hurts our trucking industry, but it also leaves eligible drivers in the cold without any resolution during this holiday season.”

Bhupinder Kaur, director of operations at UNITED SIKHS, said the looming cancellations will disproportionately impact Sikh, Punjabi, Latino and other immigrant drivers who are essential to California’s freight economy. Kaur said she has spoken to truckers who have delayed weddings, closed trucking companies, and are in limbo about how to support their families. “I myself come from a trucker family. We’re all facing the effects of this,” she said.

Despite the setback this week, Kaur said the Sikh trucking community remains hopeful. “The Sikh sentiment is always to remain optimistic,” she said. “We’re not going to accept it — we’re just gonna continue to fight.”

The licensing dispute remains unresolved as state and federal officials continue discussions about compliance and authorization to resume reissuing corrected licenses.

📸 Image(s) used under fair use for news reporting.